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Jade
"By all means, this is ridiculous." "Believe me, I have seen it. This is real." :- Unnamed Imperial Scientist and Commander The Meteor from the Heavens It fell from the skies, a meteor streaking down from the heavens, a meteor in a shower of meteors, a fragment of a much larger one still in orbit around the Sun. Whether by chance or by design, the meteor landed in China. It should have been ignored, given that the country was embroiled in civil war and both of the opposing sides were preoccupied with each other. However, this particular meteor was different. Rumours spread like wildfire about the glowing green crystal this meteor had contained and the fantastical, almost unbelievable properties it possessed. Due to the colour that this crystal was attributed to possess, it quickly gained the name of Jade, and soon that term was being used almost universally to describe the strange green crystal. Eventually, both Blue and Red China sought to see for themselves what this material was. Teams were dispatched, given orders to recover this crystal at all costs, so that the scientists of both factions could study it, to see if it could give one of them an advantage over the other. Recovery teams from both sides managed to secure samples of the crystal, and bring it back to their respective masters, without the knowledge that the other side, too, had acquired crystal samples. Both sides’ scientists were able to study the material, and both of them were quick to realize that the green crystal was truly remarkable. Mystery of the Crystal This crystal possessed many unusual properties, properties that the Blue and Red Chinese scientists could barely even begin to understand. The crystal was self replicating, able to grow in size and quantity, such that even a small sample of the crystal could eventually be grown into a far larger supply. Another thing the Chinese scientists quickly discovered was its radioactivity; there had been stories of people developing strange symptoms after being in close proximity to the crystal; people were reportedly "fused" with the crystal upon coming into contact with it. While neither side's scientists knew what to make of such claims at first, the death of several members of the recovery teams of both sides following exposure to the crystal and sudden illnesses in others led them to realise that the stories were true. Not only that, but the crystals were also emitting dangerous radiation. It was only once proper precautions had been put in place that research into the crystal could be conducted safely. It was only with further research that scientists discovered Jade’s most valuable property to date – that it was fissile. Upon being struck by a neutron with sufficiently high energy, Jade would undergo fission, splitting into two smaller nuclei, and in doing so, releasing 8 neutrons, which, should they impact other Jade atoms, would also induce fission in those atoms. If enough of the emitted neutrons struck Jade atoms, the resultant effect would be a fission chain reaction. The potentials of this material were remarkable; a power plant exploiting the energy released by the fission of Jade could conceivably have a power output in the hundreds of megawatts, a staggering amount of power. The military application was equally obvious, however; a bomb utilizing fission would have immense destructive potential, enough to level a city. Both sides were quick to leap on this new weapon, and that would lead to the horrifying end of the Chinese Civil War in a country wide atomic holocaust. Limitless Potential Jade has many interesting properties, as the researchers of the Blue and Red Chinese, and later on the Atomic Chinese, would discover. Yet, for all the fantastical properties that Jade possesses, and all the technological marvels it has made possible, the scientists of the Atomic Kingdom may have barely even begun to scratch the surface of Jade’s possibilities. Atomic Fission, for one, was only made possible with the discovery of Jade. By slamming together two subcritical masses of Jade to create a supercritical mass, one can induce a chain reaction, as the Jade fissions into smaller atoms, releasing the tremendous energy of the atom in the process. Jade is the only known material capable of undergoing sustained fission, making it vital for Atomic Chinese nuclear reactors and atomic bombs. Ray Weapons, on the other hand, rely on the interaction between Jade and high energy photons. By irradiating a piece of Jade with a sufficiently powerful beam of x-ray or gamma-ray photons, one can induce the Jade to emit an intense burst of gamma radiation. It is by this mechanism that the ray guns of the Atomic Kingdom function, firing blasts of lethal gamma-rays that are lethal to tanks and infantry. On the other hand, an ultraviolet beam of sufficient power will affect the state of Jade on the molecular level. In this state, Jade will give off a telltale signature, allowing one to ‘read’ a piece of Jade with the proper equipment. This way, one can utilise Jade as data storage mechanism. On the other hand, bombarding Jade with high energy microwave beams causes the Jade to project a plane of “solid energy”, which forms the basis of Planar Shield technology, which is employed extensively by the Atomic Chinese for defensive purposes. Behind the Scenes Jade is inspired by Tiberium, if you haven't figured it out already. Category:Technology